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Just out of fluffy interest: is whatever is going on with Belisarius Cawls Body (size, number of appendices etc.) unique or are there (at least potentially) other Techpriests running (or crawling, creeping, whatever) around in that size category? I only have the 8th edition codex and am not deep into AdMech lore, let alone novels etc.
Is there anything mentioned in the fluff about Imperials reacting to him as being of unique size/form?

General rule of thumb is the longer a Techpriest has served, the more augmented their body will become.

There are examples of ancient Tech Priests being bodily incorporated into planets. Others have had multiple bodies they can switch in and out of.

This is the ideal Mechanicus body. You may not like it, but this is what peak performance looks like.

In short, the Magi of the Mechanicus tend to get super big the longer they serve. While a single Techpriest might be an easy kill, a Magos can have all sorts of hidden gadgets and weapons ranging from ancient tech to advanced or experimental weaponry.

Though I suppose Cawl’s bod is unique, because they tend be personal works, rather than standard issue.

Ah, interesting. The part about some being integrated into planets and multiple bodies was new to me at least.

The Fabricator General at the time during the War of the Beast had to be 'transported, rebuilt and installed' when they made an audience on Terra. This would suggest that they were reaching the size and portability of a small building.

 Pyroalchi wrote:
Just out of fluffy interest: is whatever is going on with Belisarius Cawls Body (size, number of appendices etc.) unique or are there (at least potentially) other Techpriests running (or crawling, creeping, whatever) around in that size category? I only have the 8th edition codex and am not deep into AdMech lore, let alone novels etc.
Is there anything mentioned in the fluff about Imperials reacting to him as being of unique size/form?

Zagreus Kane, the loyalist counterpart to the heretic fabricator general of Mars during the heresy, is noted to be 'similar to a battle tank' in size and volume, and there are other examples of tech-priests going to extreme lengths in modification.

Graham McNeil describes some superb variations of tech priests in the Forges of Mars series.

Basically there is nothing stopping a tech priest doing whatever the hell they like with their bodies. The flesh is weak so why not be the size of a building with 50 appendages?

 Olthannon wrote:
Graham McNeil describes some superb variations of tech priests in the Forges of Mars series.

Basically there is nothing stopping a tech priest doing whatever the hell they like with their bodies. The flesh is weak so why not be the size of a building with 50 appendages?

Or turn yourself into little more than a Servo Skull, and have a variety of bods to flit between.

I know I could already do whatever I please with my minis, but it is nice to know I can get the model if I like the look, call him... Pavel Petroskovich or whatever if I'm not that fond of Belisarius story and still be pretty lore accurate with my collection.

The big bad Xenarite magos, who's name I forget, from the Mechanicus game looks pretty similar.

 Pyroalchi wrote:
I know I could already do whatever I please with my minis, but it is nice to know I can get the model if I like the look, call him... Pavel Petroskovich or whatever if I'm not that fond of Belisarius story and still be pretty lore accurate with my collection.

See, that's a whole other kettle of fish than what you initially asked in my opinion.

The answer is, as of this moment, unfortunately "No". He is uniquely sized, armed, and silhouetted in the terms of the 40k tabletop game. Speaking from experience:
He can be cut down to the size of a Dominus if you're feeling like making the effort but honestly if you just want a centauroid looking Techpriest?

Sicarians are a much, much better basis to work from. Their legs can be modified to make a quadrupedal form fairly easily if you choose to do so. You can then actually attach almost any of the various Techpriest upper bodies with a bit of cutting+green stuff work.

Sorry, I was unclear. I meant I can add the model into my COLLECTION (not on the tabletop), call him whatever I want and still be lore accurate. Hence my comment on "of course I could have done this anyway".

Should I get to play my dudes I would then of course pay points for Cawl, use Cawls rules etc. But I'm pretty sure even then, nobody would care if I call him "the big dude over there" or "Pavel Petroskovich" as long as it is clear which model I'm referening to and which rules it uses.

Fabricator-General Khleng of Metalica (from the Charadon campaign) was super-heavy sized and required anti-gravity to lift and move around. The reason he was so big was because he had a network of cogitators networked up to help him process and predict as he would often link himself up to Metalica's network.

Really at the end of the day, Tech-Priests will modify themselves to suit their duties or interests. For the "ruling" Tech-Priests this may mean they become less mobile as their focus becomes increasingly coordinating the resources of their domain rather than going out personally.

I’m guessing that you need to be much higher rank to go large due to the additional resources required to keep you functional. Power will only be a part of it, as replacement parts will be required probably quite frequently.

 Flinty wrote:
I’m guessing that you need to be much higher rank to go large due to the additional resources required to keep you functional. Power will only be a part of it, as replacement parts will be required probably quite frequently.

It could also be the fate of lower ranking Priests, if a given machine requires a human component.

A Mechanicus character can take on any number of appearances. Pretty much limitless based on the writer or modeler's imagination. Like that Xenobioligist from war of the beast. Reduced to a brain in a jar with an eye on a stalk. 3 legged with some actuators to manipulate things.

High ranking dominus have also been known to have "war forms" Suits they pretty much plug part of their fleshy bodies into to wield heavier weaponry and more armour. The fluff lets writers really go hame on what a Mechanicus model can look like. The only thing special about Cawl is they actually gave him a model that is unique in the existing range.

Though forgeworld branched out a little with this guy. https://www.forgeworld.co.uk/en-AU/Anacharis-Scoria-2018

 Pyroalchi wrote:
Sorry, I was unclear. I meant I can add the model into my COLLECTION (not on the tabletop), call him whatever I want and still be lore accurate. Hence my comment on "of course I could have done this anyway".

Should I get to play my dudes I would then of course pay points for Cawl, use Cawls rules etc. But I'm pretty sure even then, nobody would care if I call him "the big dude over there" or "Pavel Petroskovich" as long as it is clear which model I'm referening to and which rules it uses.

Given the level of individualization that Techpriests are supposed to have, it would in my opinion feel like a copout to just use the model and rules with a different name.

If you just want a biggerer Techpriest body? Convert one up! Have some fun with it! Cawl's rules aren't so grand that he's a musthave anyways.

 Pyroalchi wrote:
Ah, interesting. The part about some being integrated into planets and multiple bodies was new to me at least.

Wait until you find out all the rewards the Dark Angel's Master of The Forge gets for getting promoted.

Some change their attachments as needed as well, the one in imperator had a “war suit“ he plugged into when needed and other costumes too. The options are endless for them really.

Breton wrote:

 Pyroalchi wrote:
Ah, interesting. The part about some being integrated into planets and multiple bodies was new to me at least.

Wait until you find out all the rewards the Dark Angel's Master of The Forge gets for getting promoted.

... repeated challenges by Goffs and Noise Marines?

Andykp wrote:
Some change their attachments as needed as well, the one in imperator had a “war suit“ he plugged into when needed and other costumes too. The options are endless for them really.

Indeed. I remember a conversation about Exasas because someone was kicking off that they felt it was cringey Gav Thorpe explicitly used non-gendered pronouns for that character.

The response was something along the lines of "they're a brain in a jar so why should they identify with an organic gender. Plus you know that stupid joke about 'well then I identify as an attack helicopter'? One of Exasas' bodies described is literally an attack helicopter..."

locarno24 wrote:

Andykp wrote:
Some change their attachments as needed as well, the one in imperator had a “war suit“ he plugged into when needed and other costumes too. The options are endless for them really.

Indeed. I remember a conversation about Exasas because someone was kicking off that they felt it was cringey Gav Thorpe explicitly used non-gendered pronouns for that character.

The response was something along the lines of "they're a brain in a jar so why should they identify with an organic gender. Plus you know that stupid joke about 'well then I identify as an attack helicopter'? One of Exasas' bodies described is literally an attack helicopter..."

Yeah I remember all the fuss about the pronouns and it was massively missing the point, it wasn’t about woke-ness it was about the inhumanity of the admech. I thought it was a clever touch.